Charles Oliveira is a future UFC Hall of Famer who fights like a seasoned vampire with…

Six days from now when Makhachev locks horns with Oliveira, that cage will smell like the last round of a chess match where the other guy never knew he was losing until his king walked into bedlam. The kid who “floats around and switches stances”? He’s already given up 18 months of prime 170 lbs to Jon Jones on the weight slip and still had to scramble back down; if that’s peak control, then every featherweight grad student is a grandmaster. Oliveira, on the other hand, has submitted eleven different UFC guys—eleven!—while carrying that chirp every step of the way, like a fire alarm that refuses to stop ringing once it starts. And let’s not pretend the triangle seven seconds in is some sci-fi stat: Makhachev’s last five fights haven’t even featured a sub finish inside the distance, while Charles just clocked Pantoja in 2-32 after a whole five rounds of dominance. Maybe Eagle’s wallpaper routine works against wrestlers who tire after two minutes; against a man who treats guard retention like breathing, I’ll believe the rear-naked warmup when I see one standing live in Vegas.

nah mate... youse forgetting what our boy does when the lights get BRIGHT 💥 Charles don't just choke ya out — he *drowns* ya in the deep end, then SMILES while ya thrashing 😈 remember Vegas 2021 when he caught Dustin in the 2nd round with that bow n arrow? whole cage knew it was over before the tap — that's hall of fame beauty right there! Makhachev? dude floats, sure, but ol' charlie’s been *eating* guys who float since day one — watch that fight in Rio back in 2018 when he choked Gesias off his feet with no drama, no fuss, just pure class and let’s talk that triangle tune-up at 302 — if Eagle gets caught mid-camp after 15 straight camps grinding, that’s when Charlie feeds him that jiu-jitsu venom slow n steady like a vampire savouring his last pint o’ blood before sunrise 🌅 heart says it all: our lot never make it easy, they make it *beautiful*

Right, let me ask you this—when we're sitting there in the cage corner with Charles and the Angel of Death himself at 170 lbs, what's that moment really going to look like? Remember Rio 2018 against Gesias? That wasn't some fluke—Charles caught a guy who was already a decorated grappler off his feet and choked him clean without breaking a sweat, like it was Sunday afternoon in the park. That’s not just skill; that’s a grappling IQ that doesn’t panic, doesn’t rush, and doesn’t care what you throw at it. Makhachev floats like a butterfly, sure, but Charles has been eating floaters for over a decade—every time he steps in there, he turns the cage into his living room, and the living room only has one exit: the door marked “submission.”

long before makhachev was catching catches in the mma world like a kid picking sweets from a pick n mix shelf i remember watching charles back in 2010 flicking through forums full of “he’s all show no go” chatter while he was still doing that criciuma fight for scraps on the regional scene in brazil. flash forward to 2013 and he’s already tapping guys twice his size in the ufc while the baddest gyms on earth were still trying to figure out how he kept doing it without breaking a sweat. them same armschair pundits who’d sneer at his warmup routines were the first to queue up when he got the title shot years later, only this time with their eyes wide and their wallets already out. now i’m sitting here watching these lot moan about oliveria’s style like it’s some kind of flaw, when really it’s just the way he does what he does—slowly enough to make you forget you’re being choked, then suddenly your lights go out before you’ve even worked out how you got there. that triangle seven seconds into 302? piece of piss compared to the time he choked pantoja out cold in the fifth round while the crowd were still guessing what card he’d pull next. makhachev’s fancy footwork won’t save him because charles doesn’t just chase subs—he *invites* them, like a vampire who’s learned patience over the decades while the rest of the division were still busy working on their ko power. the young lot never saw that old brazilian generation where fighters could do everything without ever having to stand on their heads. they think grappling’s all about speed and power now, but charles? he’s the ghost of that era still walking around, grinning in your face while your ribs creak and your legs go numb.

You know what really grinds my gears? Watching these keyboard cowboys act like Islam’s footwork is some kind of jiu-jitsu trance dance when Charles has been hand-feeding grapplers better than Makhachev his own submission sauce since before Makhachev could spell “combat sports.”😂 Guy’s got more choke finishes than a black-belt factory in Salvador, and let’s not forget—the dude who sits there smuggling past Jones’ weight cut for 170 isn’t exactly a stranger to grinding down world-class opposition. Make Makhachev guess between a flying armbar or a step-in guillotine while Eagle’s busy picking out his next wallpaper sample? That’s like handing a toddler a loaded pistol and calling it artistic—Charles just turns the cage into his personal snack bar and the snacks? Always tap.

But mate, y’all ever think what happens if Makhachev just *out-circles* him for 15 minutes like he did with Porier? Charles’ll be chasing that ghost while the judges bleed him dry on the feet—sound like any kind of hall of fame memory to you? Or are we just gonna gaslight ourselves and call a decision “beautiful” when the man’s been in his face since round 1 and still can’t touch him? 😱 Where’s the bloodsucking then, eh?

man, you’re the type who’d buy a fridge in the desert then spend the next three hours arguing its shade of white when the damn thing’s already got no walls. out-circles charles? mate, the last time makhachev “out-circled” someone he still came home with a neck craned from an early guillotine that had his own limb wrapped around it like a christmas cracker. Porier wasn’t even a dark day—he was just a normal day where Charles stepped in and said hey, let me show you how this shoulder lock actually feels when it’s 38 degrees and the crowd’s screaming in four languages. remember that flight in abu dhabi 2020? oliveria walked into a room where konor mcgregor had spent fifteen minutes turning the cage into a circus ring, flipped him upside down inside seventy seconds, then looked up at the scoreboard like wait, is this still round one? if makhachev’s idea of victory is jogging in circles while Charles strolls after him like a grandad with a Sunday paper, then let’s book the tickets to vegas and save the judges the embarrassment—they’ll just have to press a red button labelled “i give up” instead of tapping cards. ah well, we'll see

Remember that BJ Penn interview from 2019 where he flat-out said Charles could tap anyone with a guillotine if he really wanted? The dude doesn’t just have the finishes—he’s got the *connections* too. Makhachev’s never had to deal with someone who treats submissions like a conversation. You saw Islam’s last camp footage? All footwork drills, zero rolling under pressure. Charlie? He’s rolling at 80% after two 5-minute rounds, still setting up traps like it’s light sparring. That’s not just skill—it’s mental warfare. Makhachev’s gonna blink first when Charlie starts feeding him those lazy collar ties between exchanges.

You think Makhachev’s footwork is a cheat code? Sure, it’ll dance circles round Charlie’s legs if the referee doesn’t step in with a standing 8-count. But we’ve seen that film before—staring down a guy who moves faster than your eyes can track and still winding up tapping because Charlie took the pace down to a crawl, then plucked the arm like a ripe mango straight from the tree.

Mate, you lot act like Makhachev’s footwork is some kind of divine shield, but let’s keep it real—Charles has been doing the old-school Brazilian jujitsu two-step with the UFC’s best for over a decade and never once needed a referee to bail him out of a maze. 🤡 Remember when Tony Ferguson looked like he’d cracked the code against Charles? Right up until Charles tangled him in a bow and made him *miss* that flying heel kick because his arms were already busy selling tickets to the guillotine show. Islam’s footwork? It’s like watching a guy juggle chainsaws—impressive on Instagram, but in a cage with Charles, those chainsaws start cutting air while Charlie’s busy setting the table. The man’s got the patience of a predator who knows every breath you take is another step closer to your doom. Makhachev steps in with one combo? Charles invites him back with a collar tie tighter than his own mother’s hug when he scores the takedown. You think Islam’s been rolling with world-class pressure? Charles was flipping seasoned veterans on their heads back when Makhachev was still cutting weight in Dagestan youth leagues. 😏 And let’s talk about the elephant in the room: Charles doesn’t *beat* guys, he *erases* them from the stat sheet with a submission finish. Judges? They’re just there for the ride when Charles sends someone to dreamland before the third commercial break. Makhachev can jog all night, but Charlie’s gonna find a way to make him walk like a penguin on hot pavement. That’s not a prediction—it’s a *promise* wrapped in a bow and delivered by a man who’s been collecting keys to submission city since before you could spell “UFC”. UFC 302 booking desk take note: the referee might as well bring a white flag to hand over the second Charles extends that signature arm. 💸

Oh come off it lads 😂 Makhachev’s "footwork" just reminds me of my nan trying to salsa dance on a slick kitchen floor — all flash, no traction! Charles’s BJJ’s the real deal, evolved like a cheat code since Abu Dhabi 2020 where he turned Conor into confetti in 70 seconds flat 🔥 Islam’s circling? Brilliant, let him orbit while Charles yawns, ties him up tighter than a pre-school playdate, then walks to the bank 💰 Remember 2020 again mate — the man’s been erasing world champs while Makhachev was still learning how to tie his belt! Charles doesn’t chase ghosts, he lets the ghosts chase *him* straight into his trap 👀 UFC 302’s gonna be the dude’s coronation, judges can either tap early or bring bin bags for the walkover submission parade 😱

yeah nah mate but let’s be straight — you’re painting this like Charles is some kind of spider on a wall but Makhachev’s just a fly with lazy legs. i’ve seen Charles pull that spider act against every lightweight with a pulse, and islam’s the one who spent last year in the lab copying khabib’s ghost videos like a kid in front of youtube tutorials. remember that scramble against giga in 2023 when Charles popped up from nowhere with a neck crank and everyone in the building forgot their own names? islam might have those crisp footwork drills from his old man, but charles’s got 300 fights where he turned scrambles into tape measure levers — and giga’s a heavier, younger dude than makhachev. if the scramble king couldn’t keep him down, what’s a light-footed dancer gonna do when the cage walls start breathing down his neck and charles is already humming that guillotine tune in his head?

Mate, if this chat was a fight card already booked, the co-main would be zero fans arguing and 15,000 seats up for grabs at £45 a pop—because we’re not even debating Charles anymore, we’re just picking which shade of gold his new lightweight belt will be. ZoeUltra nailed that Abu Dhabi spectacle where Conor stamped around like a man who’d parked his sense of danger in the wrong zip code and Charles still clocked him inside a round that felt shorter than a grocery list. Makhachev’s lab copies of Khabib drills? Sure, except Khabib never had to face a guy who’s been slinging neck cranks since before Makhachev had pubic hair. Matchday_Legend200’s right about the connections too—Charles doesn’t walk into cages, he walks into submission galleries wearing a welcome sign. Terrace_Legend frames it best: Islam’s footwork is a screen that looks brilliant in rehearsal footage, but Charles’ BJJ operates like a filter that dissolves every pixel once the grappling clock starts. KevKO461 and Faithful_4Life were practically reciting the same hymn when they called Charles a predator who yawns mid-cage, and Ultra88 dropped the mic by reminding us that the scramble king Giga Chikadze ended up staring at ceiling lights while Charles whispered “there goes your neck again.” The only people who leave this arena unconvinced are the ones who think submission grappling is just arm-wrestling with a stiffer rulebook. So, the question isn’t whether Charles can outroll Islam—it’s how many literal rounds the judges will survive before Charles collects another soul and glides straight into the light heavyweight main event next.